A Demon's Grace
by Shadow Smoke
Summary: Naruto finally has enough of the hate from the village so he goes to confront Sarutobi about it. The Hokage, seeing the effects on the boy decides to tell him the complete truth. Naruto vows to surpass his father but what will happen to the village, and how will this change him? Stronger and Smarter Naruto, pairing is undefined.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Naruto or anything in the Naruto universe. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

A Demon's Grace

Chapter 1: Determination

"Get the hell out of my store you demon!" A man yelled as he threw a kid out of the door to his book store. The boy landed in a sitting position quickly changing his pained expression to a glare. "And don't you dare look at me like that." The owner said returning the glare.

Ever since he could remember, he had been hated by his fellow villagers. He did not know why or if he did anything to deserve this, the only clue coming when they called him demon. He was now sick and tired of being the target of everyone and he would at least find a reason for this.

Naruto just stood up slowly noticing a small group had gathered to see what was going on. Once they laid eyes on the blonde boy they began glaring at him. He looked around noticing the cold looks that were given to him. This got an angered expression from the 8 year old in the middle.

"Why do all of you hate me? What have I done to any of you?" Naruto asked almost pleadingly. All he got for a response were the intensifying glares. This made Naruto clench his fist in anger. He was officially sick of it.

He began running through the streets, pushing through the crowd as he made his way to the one place he knew he could find the answer. The one place that seemed like his only respite as the days grew worst. This place held the man Naruto had come to love like a grandfather and trusted greatly.

He burst through the walls of the Hokage's office, ignoring the screams from the receptionist. Sarutobi looked up from his paperwork to see the boy that had grown to be like his adopted grandson. He was about to greet him warmly till he saw the anger in his eyes. Though not directed at him he could feel the intensity. 'Those fools finally did it.' He thought to himself.

"Naruto-kun, to what do I owe this visit?" Sarutobi asked now going into a more serious posture. He was the Hokage and he knew when a conversation was going to be serious and seeing the once happy Naruto turn colder and colder was never good.

"Why does everyone hate me?" Naruto asked bursting into tears as the words left his mouth. He was holding so much pain inside that it did not surprise the hokage at all but it brought upon him a great deal of pain to see Naruto in such a state. "Why do they call me demon, WHY DO THEY HURT ME?"

Naruto broke down right there dropping to his knees. Sarutobi got up from his desk looking down in shame. He walked slowly to the small boy and dropped to one knee to see the boy. He wrapped his arms around Naruto in a warming hug letting him cry on his shoulder. Tears began falling from the Hokage's eyes as he began to see the damage the village was doing to the young boy.

"I'm so sorry Naruto, I'm so very sorry." Sarutobi said hugging the boy tighter. It might have been the village what did the damage but he was the Hokage. He had the power and the control to stop this. He did not though. Enough was enough though and the boy deserved to know at least why he was hated.

"Naruto, I think it is time you heard the truth." The Hokage said motioning for Naruto to take a seat in front of the desk. He then told the story of how Minato, his father and third Hokage died protecting his village from the nine tailed fox. He then told of how the creature could not be killed so they had to seal it in a new born baby.

Naruto had slowly been putting the pieces together and all he could was stare wide eyes at the story. When the revelation came he looked at his hands slowly as if seeing something different in them.

"So I'm a demon like everyone said." Naruto asked, tears about to fall from his eyes. "My dad made me a monster to protect the village?" Naruto asked tears now falling freely as he looked toward the Hokage's surprised and mortified expression.

"No!" Sarutobi exclaimed forcefully. "You are not a demon and don't ever say something like that again." He said as he stood up from his desk now standing over Naruto. The tone in which he said was commanding yet warm. "You are the jailer of the demon, a hero for keeping such evil away. You'r father placed this inside you because he believed the only one who could become strong enough to hold him at bay was you. Now Naruto, are you going to follow his legacy and possibly surpass him or are you going to give in?"

Naruto was paralyzed for a couple of seconds as his mind caught up to what had been said to him. A determined smirk appeared as his eyes were set ablaze with determination. "I will become strong, stronger than my dad could possibly dream."

Sarutobi smiled as he saw the determination in the boy's eyes. "Now, remember what you have been told here is a secret of the highest priority." He said seeing Naruto switch to a pout.

"I can't even show of that my dad is the Yondaime Hokage?" Naruto asked making Sarutobi chuckle. "No, but some day you will be strong enough." Sarutobi said making Naruto look at him curiously.

'Oh kami, what have I gotten myself Into?' Sarutobi asked having to explain of his fathers enemies which will bring up more questions. This was going to be a long day.

-This wraps up chapter 1. Review to let me know if I can make something better.

-In this story Naruto will have Naruto a little OOC but not to much. It's just that receiving that much hatred ever since he was pretty much born is suppose to have an effect. All Naruto will be is smarter and stronger. (Just enough to knock that Uchiha prick down a couple,) also a little more serious yet he will still be the lovable ball of energy we know and love.

-Also I would like to say I am sorry about The Bond Made of Fire as it has been deleted from my computer and with it all the chapters that were fixed. (Which was almost all of it.)


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: To the Academy

The new academy year started and the classroom was buzzing with chatter from the students. The teacher had not arrived yet and most of them went to talk with their friends. Except Shikamaru, no he was sleeping. Sakura and Ino were all over Sasuke Uchiha like most of the other girls, Choji was eating, Hinata was quiet, Shino... well Shino was looking out the window thinking Kami knows what and Kiba was making chatter with random girls, failing horribly.

The doors to the classroom opened to reveal Iruka, books in hand and a smile on his face. Once he took one look at the students all talking he knew it was going to be a long day, no long year actually.

"Alright everyone, quiet." Iruka ordered but it was not heard through the noise that was already there. A tick mark was appearing on his forehead as he was about to yell until the door was forcefully opened making a large crash. Everyone stopped what they were doing to see what the commotion was about.

Through the door entered a blond boy with his long, spiky hair pulled back to a pony tail. Bangs hanging to the side of his face next to his whisker marks though not to long. He wore an opened up black sleeveless vest with a red fox symbol in the back, red shirt, black pants, black shoes and red, fingerless gloves. His blue eyes staring back at the other students before a quick smirk entered his face.

"Sorry, am I late for class?" Naruto asked switching his gaze to Iruka. Iruka was stunned for a few minutes as he saw a resemblance to the Yondaime except for the pony tail. He quickly composed himself and smiled.

He knew who the boy was. Those whisker marks were unmistakable but he had never had ill will towards the poor boy. He was one of the small amount of people who actually looked past their hate and saw that he was just a boy carrying a heavy burden.

"Well no but since you were the most late and flashy, why don't you introduce yourself?" Iruka said pointing towards the front of the class room. People were already whispering and if he heard right some of the girls were giggling lightly.

He put his hands in his pockets and walked towards the front, the smirk still plastered on his face. He reached to the center and starred straight to the class.

"Name's Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet all of you." Naruto said waving lazily towards the class from the side. He then walked towards the seats trying to find an empty one. He really did not know where to sit but the closest one was next to Ino. He made his way there and sat next to her. Of course on the other side sat Sasuke and next to him you can already guess.

"Hey, name's Ino, nice to meet you." Ino said quietly not to get caught my Iruka. Naruto gave an appreciative look at Ino. He had to admit that out of the girls, Ino was hands down the prettiest. Though he would keep that to himself for now.

"Nice to meet you to Ino, though we should really..." Naruto started but never got to finish as a commanding voice called out his name. "Damn, just my luck." Naruto whispered earning a giggle from Ino.

"Now since you probably know everything about what we are talking about then explain to me what is the most prominent factor in a genjutsu?" Iruka asked with a hint of annoyance. He knew this question was not about the theme but if Naruto did not answer it he would learn his lesson.

Naruto was surprised at how fast class had started but then his brain started working properly. 'That question is way to advanced for the first day in the academy, his trying to use me as an example eh, well to bad.' Naruto thought, smirk coming into play.

"Well, since genjutsu takes a lot of focus and control to use and do to the fact that it involves messing with the enemies chakara system which requires some ability to bend your chakara then chakara control would be the most important in genjutsu." Naruto answered without a doubt. This left Iruka and most of the students frozen for a couple of seconds.

"Alright then, good job Naruto." Iruka said braking out of his stupper to continue his lesson. He would have to find out how Naruto knew such advanced knowledge in genjutsu but that would be for a later time.

"Man that was close." Naruto whispered to himself but it made Ino giggle next to him. 'I really have to stop talking to myself' Naruto said in his mind. It had been a habit that had appeared some time ago.

"Wow Naruto, where did you learn that, not even I knew half of what you said." Ino said lowly. Naruto quirked an eyebrow and smiled warmly. "Guess I had a good teacher, you could call him a genius actually." Naruto answered lowly as well. He would be damned if he got caught again.

"Naruto!"

"Shit."

(Flashback)

"Old man, why do I have to learn all of this?" Naruto asked Sarutobi bored out of his mind. Ever since the Hokage told Naruto of his heritage, he has been giving Naruto tutoring. This included information on history, science, chakara and everything else he thought important. Pretty much the only thing Naruto found enjoyable was everything related with "cool jutsu" or "cool ninja stuff."

"Well Naruto, knowledge is the strongest weapon you can have so you must bear with me but after this I will gladly take you out for some ramen." Sarutobi said trying to ease the boredom. Lecturing an energetic boy like Naruto was no easy task but Naruto held incredible potential.

"Yey ramen!"

(Flashback ends)

"Alright everyone, class has ended. Everyone go eat your lunches. Naruto, would you mind staying a little while, I want to talk to you." Iruka said ending the class. Naruto knew why he had called for him, an interrogation was coming.

"Yes, Iruka sensei" Naruto answered without delay. He was hungry but having Sarutobi as a teacher had pounded any disrespect from Naruto. He might be one of the smartest shinobi but also a strict teacher.

Naruto casually walked towards Iruka's desk with his hands I'm his pockets. Though he respected Iruka, he was annoyed as well. He had not eaten breakfast due waking up late and now he was being denied lunch. Safe to say he was annoyed.

"Naruto, I want to know how you know so much about genjutsu. What I asked you was, to the least, genin level knowledge. From where did you learn this?" Iruka asked with his arms crossed while sitting on his desk.

(Flashback)

"Now Naruto, you are at the right age to enter the academy and I feel you have learned enough. Now know that their is a condition for this knowledge." Sarutobi said to the twelve year old Naruto. Naruto had taken his studies with the old man to heart and now he was more than ready.

"Alright gramps, what do I have to do?" Naruto asked smiling. He had always taken the hokage as a grandfather but now after all this time together they were closer than ever. They were practically family.

"You should not tell who taught you all these things to anyone, it just would not do for the hokage to show favortism no matter how much you deserved it." Sarutobi said, his face turning serious.

Now, Naruto normally would have protested but Sarutobi had taught him how politics work and knew the shit that the council would bring. He just smiled warmly and nodded, showing he understood completely

(Flashback Ends)

"I read a lot." Naruto said shrugging. He would not brake his promise to the old saw that something was strange but decided to just let it go. It was not unheard of for students to be gifted.

"Alright Naruro, you may leave for lunch." Iruka said waving Naruto to the door. The boy happily obliged walking out the classroom and moving to the school yard. He was hungry and that ramen he had sealed in the scroll was calling out to him like a divine presence. No matter how much he had changed his diet he would always have a special part in his heart for ramen.

He made it to the yard which consisted of a small clearing behind the academy. It had a tree to the right side with a couple of training dummies to the left side. In the middle their was a small area surrounded with small rocks which was the sparring area.

Naruto walked towards the tree which was suprisingly left alone conscidering it gave a nice shade. He sat down, his back to the tree giving a small sigh when he dropped. He removed the storage scroll from his pocket and thanked Sarutobi for teaching him about them. He pushed some chakara into the scroll and the ramen, which was already cooked, poofed into existence. He was about to start eating when he saw something from the corner of his eyes.

"Well, if it isn't the weakling of the bunch. What's wrong, to scared to do anything?" A boy spat at a white eyes girl who seemed to be crying. She was surrounded by three more boys who were snickering. On the floor was the remains of her lunch which the boys had thrown.

"Please, leave me alone." The girl said pleadingly. It has always been like that, thanks to her timid personality she was always picked on. She had never had the strength to stand up for herself. Seeing this, Naruto was fuming, he stood up and made his way to the group. He got in between the leader and the white eyes girl.

"Well if it isn't the Uzumaki brat, leave before we teach you what happens when you-" the boy started but was unable to finish as a punch connected with his jaw. He was pushed back and fell on his back. The whole group was stunned at seeing their leader punched like that.

"I don't care who you are but don't be stupid enough to bully someone in front of me." Naruto said glaring at the boy in the ground. The other three helped their boss from the ground and surrounded Naruto.

"Well what do you know, we have hero." One of them said earning a laugh from the group. A small crowd had gathered around them from the commotion. Naruto only smirked.

"I'm not a hero, I do what I want, and what I want is for all of you to fuck off." Naruto said making the four rush towards him. The surrounded him with making a square around him. He dodged a fist from the one in the front and used his momentum to throw him towards the one on his back. He blocked the fist from the one in the left and kicked the right ones knee breaking it. He then elbowed the one in the right on the nose rendering him unconscious

The two left rose from the ground and saw one of them knocked out and the other screaming and holding his knee. They started taking steps back as they started hesitating to attack.

"I don't think that to continue fighting would be smart." Naruto said to the two remaining. They quickly grabbed their friends and rushed out of the yard, most probably to the infirmary. Naruto walked towards the girl they were picking on and extended his arm to help her up.

"Name's Naruto Uzumaki, you alright?" Naruto asked with a smile. The girl looked gingerly before accepting the hand. She got up and dusted herself off and looked at Naruto.

"Uhm, my n-name is Hi-Hinata, I'm fine." Hinata said looking towards the ground. Naruto frowned slightly at her shyness but quickly composed himself. "Thanks for h-helping me." Hinata said smiling lightly towards the blonde boy.

"Don't mention it." Naruto said smiling, he then remembered that her lunch was on the ground. "Hey Hinata, is that your lunch?" Naruto asked pointing towards the small sandwich spread on the ground.

"Y-yes, I guess it was?" Hinata said dropping her face to the ground. Naruto was getting more and more mad at the ass holes who picked on her. He then remembered about his own lunch. He would have to sacrifice, with much pain, his ramen for the sake of the girl in front him.

"Here Hinata, you can have my lunch." Naruto said taking out his storage scroll and poofing out the cooked ramen. He then handed her the ramen though it pained him greatly.

"Naruto-kun, then what are you going to eat?" Hinata asked surprised at the kindness she was being shown. He just shooked his head, smile still plastered on his face. He walked away while waving his hand behind his back.

"It's a gift, enjoy." Naruto said walking back to the tree. Since lunch was a no go, he could always continue reading his scroll consisting of basic chakara control exercises. He was beyond his academy classmates but he would hide that fact for now.

Many people saw what happened and they all had different opinions. Most girls had stars in their eyes at the cavalry of the blonde knight. Most boys were a little jealous. Shikamaru was trying to descifer the new boy, Sasuke had a pensative look on his face, Sakura was a little shocked and Ino had a small smile as she saw what Naruto had done for the shy Hinata.

Yet what was in everyones mind at the moment was.

Just, who is Uzumaki Naruto?

-This ends chapter 2, and I hope you like it. Review to tell me what you think and what I can fix. Important notice below.

-The reason that it took so long to update was because all my free time was spent trying to recover the files of The Bond made of Fire. Turns out that the expiration days in this site was not kidding and since the files are in my damaged computer computer I was trying my best to recover them and I still am. I no longer have the files and I am trying to fix my damn computer to get ehm back. Prey for the best.


	3. Chapter 3

-Alright my bretheren, here is another chapter but first, I'd like to address some complaints.

Yes the ones that were bullying Hinata knew her since she was always an easy target and was even before the academy. Sasuke, well damn he was always attractive to girls before he joined up the academy and well I think that covers it up. I wanted to wait for this chapter since the idea was to be just as confused as Naruto about all the ordeals but whatever. To top it all off, I put the age in both the start of the training and and starting the academy. For all of those that can't do math it was four years from 8-12, counting the first. Now on with the show.

Change: The Uchiha are still alive in my fic and their are a couple in the academy but most are not important.

Chapter 3: Sasuke's Ignorance

It has been two months since the start of the academy and Naruto has become somewhat of an enigma to everyone. He did not stand for bullying, punishing it when ever he saw it. He was an incredibly nice and funny boy who made it a little brighter everywhere he went.

He never really was the type to pick a group to hang out with, choosing to freelance and talk to everyone. He had amounted a small group of fangirls just like Sasuke but unlike said Uchiha, he actually was nice to them and didn't ignore them. He had caught the attention of said Uchiha some time ago.

It was lunch time in the academy and Naruto sat peacefully under the tree in the yard. This was his little area since no one, for some strange reason, went there and it gave Naruto some peace. Of course, this peace wasn't gonna last as a shadow rose over Naruto.

"Naruto, get up." Sasuke commanded with a smirk on his face down at the resting Naruto, leaning against the tree. He was not asleep but he was tired from reading a scroll on his father's history all night. "Did you hear me or are you deaf, get up." Sasuke ordered more forcefully.

This got the attention of a couple of the other students around them. They slowly made a small circle around the pair. One particular person was not amused. 'Wonder what that idiot is doing now.' Thought a girl with black flowing hair, blue eyes and a purple shirt with the Uchiha symbol in the back of it. She had black shorts with the normal, black shinobi sandles.

"I'm not deaf, I just don't want to respond." Naruto said without opening his eyes but a frown appearing on his face. He did not hate the Uchiha but he didn't like him either. He was an ass most of the time and had pride to spare. "And much less to someone as disrespectful as you." Naruto said not bothering to uncross his arms or open his eyes.

Right their, Sasuke wanted nothing but to punch him. No one talked back to an Uchiha. They were the best of the best and he was the son of Fugaku Uchiha, head of the Uchiha clan. This blonde boy would learn to respect him right now even if he had to wipe the floor with him.

"How dare you disrespect an Uchiha?" Sasuke spat at Naruto who couldn't care less of Sasuke's ranting. He knew most Uchiha were stuck up and arrogant, well in the academy anyways but Sasuke was the worst by far. "Get up so I can show you how a real shinobi acts." Sasuke said, his tone of voice getting higher since he was being ignored.

"Sasuke that's enough." The girl (the one I described earlier) said loudly. She was annoyed, that much was certain. She had her arms crossed and was glaring at Sasuke. "All your doing is bringing shame to the clan." She said, angering Sasuke greatly.

"Shut up Lucy, don't get involved in my things." Sasuke said angrily at the girl now known as Lucy. She was always treating him like a baby even though they were the same age and it angered him. Not to mention his pride was probably being destroyed.

"Then don't behave like a damn child and maybe I don't have to." Lucy said walking away from the group. She was furious but hid it under the uninterested face she wore. "Just know that what your doing does not only bring shame to the Uchiha but to our father and mother as well." She said as she continued back to the academy.

'Damn that Lucy." Sasuke said mentally. Sasuke was now pissed at being ridiculed by his own sister and he would take that anger out on whoever pushed last. "Get up Uzumaki or are you afraid to fight an Uchiha. Maybe you should go cry to your parents... oh wait, you don't have any. They probably abandoned you since they knew how w-" Sasuke started but was interrupted by a kick to his abdomen.

Naruto was, by far one of the most pacifist person in every sense. He hated fighting for no reason but if their is one thing that everyone knew about Naruto is that you should never talk about his family. It had always been a touchy subject for him and to hear the Uchiha talk about them like that destroyed any self control he had.

Sasuke was on the ground gasping for air, watching as Naruto stood up from the floor. His new diet had made him grow to the normal size he should be and his hair hanged down his eyes covering them. His fist were white from the pressure and his teeth were clenched shut.

"Listen to me Uchiha and listen well. I can handle anything you throw at me but if you go talking about my parents again, not even being an Uchiha, hell not even Kami would be able to save you." Naruto said enraged.

Everyone gulped and took a step back as Naruto said those words. To hear a kind soul say such things with such fury behind it was unsettling. They made a silent vow never to talk about his parents. Unknown to everyone, someone who was thought gone had listened to everything from the entrence to the academy.

"Really did it now brother." Lucy said to herself as she went inside. Even if he was her brother, she recognize that he deserved what's coming.

Naruto then walked to the academy, leaving a staggered Sasuke behind. He was still in the ground, trying to comprehend what had happened. He quickly came back to his senses and went to deliver a kick to Naruto's back.

The kick hit him behind the head, pushing Naruto to the ground. Before he could hit the ground though, he put his hands in front and used them to front roll to stand. He turned towards the Uchiha in anger. Now he had done it.

Sasuke rushed again trying to punch him. Naruto simply dropped to the style that Sarutobi taught him. Legs were separate with the left in front. Left arm bended in a tilted manner over the face while the right arm was outstretched behind him.

Sasuke fist was blocked by his left arm and Naruto brought his left arm around by twisting his body. Still outstretched, his right arm hit his left arm by a block. He wasn't done as he used the momentum to jump and deliver a kick to his head.

Sasuke was sent flying to the left as he came to a halt and stood up. He got back to his family style and glared at Naruto. This was not a regular fighting style and Naruto was more skilled than he anticipated.

Sasuke, once again went to punch Naruto in the face while Naruto kept a calm atmosphere around him. Once Sasuke threw the punch, Naruto tilted his head to the left avoiding it. He then grabbed Sasuke's wrist and jumped, delivering a knee to Sasuke's chest. He was pushed back but quickly composed himself and threw a kick at Naruto who had not reached the floor yet, making him unable to dodge or block.

Naruto was pushed to the ground but used his hands to propel himself up in the air. He landed a small distance away from Sasuke in fighting stance.

"That's it, i'm tired of fighting." Naruto said running towards Sasuke. Once he was in punching distance, Sasuke threw a punch only for Naruto to sidestep easily. Naruto then chopped at Sasuke's neck and he dropped to the floor unconscious.

"Sasuke-kun!" Screamed a couple of his fan-girls but most were cheering for Naruto. Sasuke had always been a dick to most so he wasn't really liked and with Naruto in the scene, the choice was obvious of who was the favourite.

"Naruto!" Iruka yelled gaining th attention of everyone. Naruto just turned his head towards Iruka. He was still pissed but was trying to control himself. Wasn't anyones fault Sasuke was an ass hole. "Mind explaining what happened here?" Iruka asked but demanding instead.

"Uhm, I-Iruka sensei, I-It wasn't Naruto's fault." Hinata said trying to defend Naruto. "Yeah, It was all Sasuke's fault." Kiba said out loud trying to defend his friend. They both had a love for pranks and a good prank always brought people together. Other voices of protest were heard, including his fan-girls. He was still confused by the fact that he had fan-girls.

"Guys, It's ok. I was the one who lost control." Naruto said calming himself down. Seeing people trying to defend him made his anger disappear entirely. "Thanks for the help guys but I have to take the fall for my wrongs." Naruro said smiling with his thumb up. He then followed Iruka to the academy thinking one thing. 'I so have detention today'

Back in the park another teacher took the knocked out Sasuke to the infirmary as Sakura followed behind, worried for her love. Kiba and choji were a little mad that Naruto had to get in trouble, Shino was... unreadable as always, Shikamaru was sleeping in the grass, Hinata was against the wall worried for Naruto and Ino... Ino was conflicted. On one side we have the fool blown hottie that's Sasuke but then theirs Nice and sweet Naruto.

'Wait, now that I think about it Naruto's pretty good looking two.' Ino thought but quickly dispelled those thoughts. 'No, I like Sasuke-kun.' Ino thought

'But...'

-This ends chapter 3, hope you liked it. Please review as I love hearing from you guys and I always read the reviews. Now the pairing will be undecided until further into the story. I plan on updating every monday so you an have something (even something a small as this) to look forward to and to give you strenght to survive the mondays.

Now since I know I'm going to get this question. No Sasuke is not going to be all downer since his family is still pretty much alive. Though he still will be the high and mighty prick he always was... for now.


	4. Chapter 4

-I would like to apologize for my grammar errors that have passed my radar. English might not be my native language but that does not mean that I can just leave them there. I will try to be more attentive from now on. Thank you to all of my reviewers, every time my email gets a new email notice saying I have a new review I always get as excited like a child in Christmas.

Chapter 4:

"Kiba Inuzuka, Naruto Uzumaki!" Iruka yelled, bursting through the classroom doors. He was mad, that much was for certain. All the worries were wiped from the student's minds once they saw that he was covered in paint from head to toe. "Which one of you put a burst tag with paint balls in the bathroom door?" Iruka yelled, glaring daggers towards Naruto and Kiba.

Both boys had developed a close friendship since they were alike in many ways. They had a love for pranks but most of the time they played against each other. Once in a while they would join forces and wreak havoc. Both had a drive to move forward and always tried to surpass each other, it had built to a small rivalry.

The prank was really simple actually, it just used a tag that, instead of exploding everything to smithereens, it would just act like a sealing scroll, sealing everything you want into it and once you triggered it, would lunch all the contents like projectiles. All Naruto had to do really was, instead of putting kunai into the tag, he would put paint balls.

"Why Iruka, don't you think your being a little bit unfair?" Kiba asked, smirk fighting to show. He fought with all his might but he was quickly losing this battle. "I mean, it doesn't always have to be us." Kiba said shrugging, acting like he was insulted. This got a lot of the other students chuckling lightly.

"Naruto!" Iruka yelled at the sleeping boy. He knew that Kiba had something to do with it but right now he had to wake up sleeping beauty. "Get up this instant!" He yelled, a tick mark appearing in his rainbow colored forehead. This stirred Naruto right up and he raised his head to see white. He had a paper stuck to his forehead, earning laughs from the class.

"Mmmh, what hour is it?" Naruto asked in a rasped voice. He was not really sleeping but Iruka`s face is so worth it. "Man, I close my eyes for five minutes and… Iruka, why are you rainbow colored?" Naruto asked as he removed the paper from his face, he had to push back the laugh that was building in his throat.

Iruka looked madder and madder as time went by and the students could have sworn they saw steam rolling from Iruka`s ears. He took a couple of deep breaths and calmed down; bursting in anger would solve nothing in this situation.

"Alright then, since I can`t really prove that it was you two." Iruka said while glaring at the two nonchalant boys. "I will be right back once I clean myself up and we will start the class." He said, exciting the classroom to the bathroom. Once he left the whole classroom burst into laughter.

"Damn man, I thought we were goners for sure." Kiba said laughing, he switched his sight towards Naruto. To say he was worried was an understatement but this was Naruto`s idea. Almost all of his plans worked out in the end. "You really know some crazy plans." He finished smirking.

"I am pretty good if I do say so myself, though you're acting needs work." Naruto said smiling towards his friend. Everyone else laughed once again. Iruka entered a couple of minutes later and the whole class was chatting. Except Shikamaru, no he was sleeping as always.

"Alright class, we will now have sparring matched outside with your classmates. Please go to the back yard and the first match will be Ino v.s Shikamaru." Iruka said as all the students stood up and began walking to the yard. They woke Shika up knowing he would protest.

Naruto was walking a little behind when he saw Ino lagging behind like him. She was looking at the ground and began going slower as they almost reached the yard. If one thing was for sure, it was that if Naruto saw you down he would immediately go and cheer you up and this time would be no different. He walked towards Ino and reached her quickly.

"Hey Ino, you ok?" Naruto asked with concern in his voice. They really didn`t talk much since he beat Sasuke. This made him a little sad since she was the first to talk to him in the academy but it didn`t really surprise him. Most girls were in love with Sasuke since the beginning and now would be no different.

"Oh Naruto, I`m ok just a little worried." Ino said, forcing a smile. "It`s just that I hate sparring with a passion. I`m not really strong and I get beat easily." Ino said looking towards the ground in shame.

Naruto knew why she was so weak. It had to do with her ignoring any type of training, preferring to blindly follow an egotistical ass hole. Naruto had handled his fan club in a very nice way, instead of following him blindly, now they actually talk with him normally and they had gone back to their training instead of following boys.

"Ino, why do you think you are so weak?" Naruto asked without faltering. Though he was going to be a little strong with her, she needed to see her mistakes. "If you really don't know then It`s because you are always paying more attention to what Sasuke`s doing then your own training. It`s alright to have a crush, it happens to all of us but following blindly, ignoring your own wellbeing is not right. You're going to be a ninja soon and you need to take your training seriously." Naruto finished.

This surprised Ino and left her speechless, she was trying to find some way to retort but the more she thought about it, the more she saw that Naruto was right in every sense. She was always following Sasuke around even out of the academy. Hell, her study sessions were sometime taken over by Sasuke. She began to look more and more ashamed as she thought it through.

"Now, now no use getting all sulky about it but now you should put more effort in training and learning. Your smart Ino, one of the smartest in the class and I know that if you really start trying now that you will be a spectacular ninja." Naruto said smiling brightly. Ino couldn't help but smile back at the blonde and get a small blush from the praise.

They arrived at the sparring area they started the sparring matches. It was a purely taijutsu spar, Ino had lost to Shikamaru easily but Naruto was there to run damage control. Every student after that had already fought, leaving only Naruto and Sasuke left. Figures leave the best for last.

They both got into the small arena looking at each other from opposite sides. They both had a look of concentration saying they would spring into action the minute Iruka gave the ok. They both got into their fighting style and began glaring at one another. The tension could practically be seen in the area as all the students starred at the two combatants.

"Both fighters ready? Iruka asked motioning for them. Getting a node form both he saw they were ready. "Start!" He exclaimed jumping back as the match started. Both fighters did not move but instead waited for a small opening in the other`s defense.

Both fighters jumped at one another and began exchanging punches and kicks in the center. One after another, hits were being delivered and they jumped back looking like nothing had happened. They began once again with their exchange.

"Who do you think will win?" A random student asked to everyone around him. Everyone pretty much gave him the "I don't know," Except for a particular, pink haired girl.

Of course Sasuke-kun will win, how could he lose to him?" Sakura said and asked defending her crush. Everyone groaned from her constant rambling on how Sasuke was better than anyone. It was annoying to put it lightly but everyone had developed a defense mechanism for it. Pretend she does not exist and continue your life.

"I t-think Naruto-kun will win."Hinata said stuttering as always. Ever since Naruto saved her from those bullies some time ago, Naruto talked to her more and quickly became friends with him. Although, something else then friendship was growing inside Hinata and the more time she spent with the blonde, the more it increased.

'Hmm well this seems interesting.' Lucy said as she inspected the fight between Naruto and her brother. Something told her that from now something would change but she didn`t know what exactly. 'Well, might as well finish watching this match, this is getting kind of interesting.'

Naruto dodged another one of Sasuke`s punches but this time the opening was too great to let pass and Naruto bent low and kicked Sasuke`s feet from under him. He was sent crashing to the ground face first before rolling to a standing position again. He roared as he charged again, losing his cool would be the greatest mistake Sasuke would make.

Naruto simply side stepped and grabbed his wrist. He then delivered a knee to Sasuke`s abdomen leaving him without breath. He fell to his knees, trying to regain his breath from the unforgiving hit. Once he regained his strength he looked at Naruto with hatred.

"How are you so strong? I`m an Uchiha, I should be an elite." Sasuke asked with furry in his voice. He was glaring at Naruto yet he remained calm. Naruto walked towards Sasuke and extended his hand towards him. Sasuke looked confused for a minute and Naruto started talking.

"Strength doesn`t come from who your family is and you aren't born with it either. Strength is nurtured by training day and night until your bones can`t handle any more. Strength comes from knowing your weaknesses and working on them. Strength is always striving to be better than, not others but yourself. Always work to be better than whom you are now." Naruto finished with his hand still extended.

Sasuke starred wide-eyes at Naruto. How could he dispute what was just said when the proof is right there in front of him extending his hand to help him up. He knew that Naruto trained like a machine but he always thought that he would always be a weak and would be behind him. Now though he can appreciate the effects of his training.

Sasuke slowly grasped Naruto`s hand in acceptance to his gesture. Naruto gave a small smile and helped him up. Sasuke then smirked before walking off back to the academy.

"Don`t think this is over Naruto, I`m going to get stronger and we`ll see who will win the next time." Sasuke said entering the academy. Everyone was surprised that Sasuke did not explode in anger the minute he dropped to the ground. Most of them made a promise to train much harder after that speech and Naruto received much more respect from his fellow students.

One girl starred wide-eyes at the exchange but quickly composed herself. Seeing Sasuke acknowledging someone was like some sort of miracle.

"You're very peculiar Naruto Uzumaki, strange but in a good way." Lucy said lowly as she walked back to the academy following the rest of the group. "I might have a word with him later on." Lucy finished as they got into the classroom.

-This ends chapter 4, hoped you like it and, as always please review as they always help me get better at my writing. This chapter is a little short but we are close to ending the academy chapters so yeah.

-I just finished the two seasons of Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion and all I have to say is, spectacular anime. I highly recommend it for you guys. It has an amazing stories that`ll hit you right in the heart every chance it gets.

-Im going to release this chapter now so you have something to read before going to sleep tonight.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Silent Company to Break the Loneliness

After a long academy year, the day had finally arrived. The day that would mark the student`s growth to become ninja, though it would be to become genin it was a big step forward for many. Though many of them were nervous for the test that would determine whether you would move forward, Naruto was a different story. He was happy that he would finally move a step closer to his goal of surpassing his father.

Naruto walked with his hands in his pockets with a smile on his face. He was wearing a simple, sleeveless, grey shirt with an opened up, black vest over it. He wore black ANBU pants with his kunai holster to the left of his waist and grey shoes. He also had black, fingerless gloves. He had cut his hair from the ponytail he had and went to his old, spiky hair cut. He kept his bangs longer though, making him look a little more like his father.

As he slowly walked through the village on his way to the academy, he received the normal glares and hatred from the villagers. Naruto knew why he was hated and thanks to that he now understood their actions. He simply ignored them but even with the information of why they did it, it still affected him.

He reached his classroom as he opened the door to see his fellow classmates chatting. Kiba spotted him and waved him over. Naruto happily complied and walked over to him and took the sit beside him.

"So Naruto, since I know your gonna pass the test and you know damn well I`m gonna pass to. Who do you think we're gonna be pared with?" Kiba asked as Naruto took the seat next to him. To say the truth, Naruto never really thought of that. Who would he be paired with? He really didn`t have a problem with any of them.

"In all truth Kiba, I haven`t really thought about it." Naruto answered truthfully. "Guess we`ll see, won`t we?" Naruto finished as Iruka entered the room. Everyone quieted down since they all were anxious to get underway with the test.

"Alright, the test will now start. As I call your name you will stand in front of the class and do a transformation, a substitution and a clone." Iruka said as he took a look in the list. Everyone wanted to get this over already and most were squirming in their seats.

Naruto took a look around the classroom from boredom as his eyes landed on Ino. When he really thought about it, she had changed so much in a small amount of time. She had stopped fawning over Sasuke and had started taking her training seriously. She turned her sights over to Naruto and smile seeing he was looking at her. Naruto blushed lightly at being caught and smiled back.

He then switched his eyes towards Sasuke, he was still arrogant but his demeanor had changed lightly. He was not a complete dick like he was before and he was a little, even just a little friendlier. Shikamaru was sleeping, no surprise there. Choji was eating a bag of chips which was also no surprise. Hinata was nervous, that much was for certain. Shino was… unreadable as ever and Sakura was sparing glances towards Sasuke.

"Naruto Uzumaki, your turn to take the test." Iruka said breaking Naruto from his thoughts. He nodded as he stood up and walked towards the front of the classroom. He couldn`t wait to finally be a ninja but he kept his excitement in check.

"Alright first, transform to whomever you want." Iruka instructed making Naruto nod. He made the signs and focused his chakara without wasting a single second. He had already known these techniques before the academy thanks to Sarutobi.

"Transform." Naruto said lowly as his body was covered in smoke. Everyone waited until the smoke let up to witness something amazing. In front of all of them was the Fourth Hokage re-incarnated. He smirked seeing all the dropped jaws, including Iruka`s.

"Well you passed, that`s for sure. Now, do a substitution next." Iruka ordered. Naruto went back to his normal self and looked around for something to do substitution with. He thought for a couple of seconds before grinning.

He pictured his target and smoke once again covered the blond. Once the smoke disappeared, there stood Sarutobi with his chair, reading a document.

"Damn paperwork, I wish I could take a fire jutsu and burn all of this infernal… What?" Sarutobi asked as he looked around. He starred wide eyes at the class before looking at Iruka. A tick mark was appearing on his face.

"Naruto?" He asked as Iruka slowly nodded. He sighed and once again, smoke covered the front of the class as Naruto reappeared where he was before. He was smirking lightly, knowing he would have to talk to him later to apologize.

"Ok, almost done. Now do a clone jutsu" Iruka ordered making Naruto nod once again. He made the signs and smoke covered the whole classroom this time. Everyone starred, once again wide eyes as the classroom was covered with Naruto`s. They all disappeared in smoke as he the original walked to Iruka`s desk.

"How`d I do?" Naruto asked, smirk not leaving his face. Iruka smiled back and opened his drawer to take out a headband. "You pass Naruto, now sit back down so I can continue with the tests." Iruka said with a smile. True that Naruto was a little strong with his pranks and all that but all in all he was a good boy. He would miss him terribly when he leaves.

"Thank`s Iruka sensei." Naruto said smiling and began walking back to his desk. The rest of the test happened normally with a really low amount failing and once everyone was done and had their head bands. Iruka stood and walked to the middle of the class.

"Alright class, this ends your school year. Come back tomorrow so we may place you in your respective teams." Iruka said making his entire class nod in acknowledgement." Alright, your all dismissed." Iruka said making all the students stand and walk outside. Naruto made his way out and once he excited, he saw all the students went to show their parents their new headbands. He unconsciously tightened his grip on his headband as he was, once again reminded that he was an orphan.

A voice called for his name making him turn around to see Sasuke there with his sister Lucy and his brother Itachi. He wondered what Sasuke could want and he let curiosity take the wheel as he walked to the trio. Once in front of them Itachi extended his hand towards Naruto.

"My name`s Itachi Uchiha, I`m Sasuke`s younger brother and you already know this two." He said pointing towards Lucy and Sasuke. Lucy smirked and Sasuke nodded in recognition. "Well Sasuke, tell him what you wanted to say." He said, pushing Sasuke forward. He glared at his brother before looking to the ground.

"Sorry for the way I acted." Sasuke said looking to his left, surprising Naruto to a whole new level. He had his eyes wide even at the thought of Sasuke apologizing. Sasuke was about to walk away since he did not receive any answer and to say the truth he did not expect any. He had really thought about what Naruto had said and he felt sorry.

"Apology accepted." Naruto said making Sasuke look stunned at Naruto. He was smirking with his hand extended towards the Uchiha. Breaking out of his daze, he grabbed his hand and shook with a smirk of his own. "Now, you should go and tell your dad you're a ninja, I`m sure he`ll be proud." Naruto said making Sasuke nod with a smile.

The trio walked away, leaving Naruto alone. Lucy looked back to Naruto and caught sight of his smile faltering for a second before he walked away. She was curious about him since not much was known about him outside of the academy. He was really closed off and that made her very curious about him.

"I`ll be home soon guys, I want to do something first." Lucy said receiving nods from both Uchiha. She walked back and found Naruto walking away from the academy. He had scowl as she noticed that as he walked, the villagers were giving him dirty looks. "What the hell is going on?" Lucy asked herself as she followed Naruto.

Naruto stood on top of the Hokage monument looking down at his village. The sun was going down, making the sky take an otherworldly orange glow. Sarutobi had a meeting so he was alone to celebrate his achievement of becoming a shinobi. He sighed as he put his headband around his left arm.

"Naruto." Lucy called out behind Naruto making him look back. "What are you doing here?" She asked curious as to why he was alone in a place like this. He smiled softly as he once again turned his sight down to the village.

"I don`t know where to go really, I am an orphan so I can`t show my parents that I`m a ninja for them to be proud. No one is waiting for me home, no one is there to greet me. I just didn`t feel like dealing with that now." Naruto said making Lucy look at him with her eyes wide. Seeing such a strong willed boy say something like that just didn`t sit right to her.

Lucy starred at him for a couple of seconds before moving to stand next to him. Naruto looked at her with an eyebrow raised at the unexpected action but smiled softly and turned down his sights to the village.

"You still haven`t answered my question." Lucy said making Naruto chuckle lightly. She then looked at the blonde next to her. "Why here of all places?" Lucy asked, repeating the question from the beginning. Naruto chuckled and changed his sight to her.

"I don`t know, this is just a place where I have been going since I was a kid. It`s kind of a place I like to go to think. It brings me peace of mind." Naruto answered putting his hands in his pockets as he starred at the village once again. Lucy nodded and changed her sights to the village like Naruto.

"You don`t have to stay you know, I`m alright here" Naruto said making her scowl lightly. She then smirked and looked towards the blonde.

"I do what I want Naruto and right now I want to stay here." She said as she crossed her arms. Though the words were harsh they had no malice in them. This made Naruto smile lightly as he kept looking out to the village.

"Thanks." Naruto said not much louder than a whisper but she caught it and it made her smile a tiny little bit. They stayed like that till nightfall none speaking to each other but enjoying each other`s company. Naruto more than her since he expected to be alone, it brought a small smile to his face as he could feel Lucy`s presence next to him.

"I have to get home before they start worrying about me." Lucy stated putting her hands in her pockets and starting to walk. She saw that Naruto started following her and stopped. "Why are you following me?" She asked glaring at the blonde. He took a step back and raised his hands in defeat.

"I`m just gonna walk you home. It`s the least I can do." Naruto said making her sigh and utter a fine, letting the blonde walk with her to the Uchiha district. They walked in silence through the village and Lucy was paying close attention to the looks that Naruto was receiving. This was very strange since Naruto was not really the type of guy who could be hated for something he did; he was too nice of a person.

"Naruto, why do they stare at you like that?" Lucy asked, curiosity getting the best of her. This made Naruto sigh and look at the ground. Lucy was getting impatient now. "So are you going to tell me?" Lucy asked getting impatient. Something was very wrong, she could just feel it.

Naruto was in deep thought for a minute about the situation. He couldn`t tell her now and coming up with an excuse was not an option now. Some time ago they had reached the district and they were in front of her house right now.

"I can`t tell you Lucy, not right now anyways. One day I will tell you and you will understand everything but until that day I just can`t tell you." Naruto said making her completely confused. "I`m sorry." He said as he walked away, leaving a stunned Lucy behind.

She broke from her stupor and looked at the direction that Naruto had disappeared in. She sighed and entered her home but not before giving a couple of final words.

"Who are you Naruto Uzumaki?"

-That ends chapter 5 of A.D.G, please review to let me know what I can fix on my writing. I have some awesome ideas for this story and I can`t wait to put them here.


	6. Chapter 6

-The teams that I will set up will be slightly different, including the numbers of the team. Only the important ones will receive attention.

Chapter 6: Over a Cup of Tea

Naruto slowly opened his eyes, squinting at the light that shined through the window from his apartment. Today is the day that he would be assigned to a team and that fact woke him up immediately. Becoming a genin would be the first step in surpassing his father and he could hardly wait.

Before he could come to his senses, a knock on the door surprised him. He was confused since no one really visited the demon. He slowly stood up and put some blue shorts and a red t-shirt so he was not in his underwear when he answered. He walked towards it and opened it slightly to see someone he did not expect to see.

"Sasuke, what are you doing here?" Naruto asked, confused by the appearance of the raven haired boy. "You are the least I expected to visit me." Naruto added still looking slightly dazed. Sasuke sighed but put on a smirk in response. This confused Naruto even more.

Ever since receiving Naruto`s little speech in strength, Sasuke had found himself thinking on the words that were spoken that day. He slowly let the words sink in as he understood them more clearly and accepted. He was genuine when he apologized the day and decided that it was best to get to know the blonde shinobi.

"I was going to the academy when I realized that your apartment was on the way." Sasuke said shrugging. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the Uchiha, making him scowl lightly. "What?" Sasuke asked as he saw a question coming.

"How did you know where I live in the first place?" Naruto asked making Sasuke gulp lowly. How was he supposed to say that the day he got his ass handed to him, Sasuke had followed Naruto to see why he was so strong? Fortunately, Naruto simply headed to his apartment that day to read a scroll on his bed so Sasuke didn`t get much information.

"Not the main point right now." Sasuke said shrugging, trying not to show too much embarrassment. "What is important is that the team assignments are going to start soon and your still look like you just woke up." Sasuke said making Naruto scowl but agree. He was just sleeping and now thanks to the Uchiha, he was going to have to prepare fast. Eating Breakfast was not an option due to the time.

"Alright then, I`ll see you at the academy." Naruto said as he closed the door, leaving the Uchiha dazed. "Did Naruto just close the door on my face?" Sasuke asked himself before shrugging and began walking towards the academy. All in all, this was a major waste of time.

Naruto quickly showered and put on the clothing he had the day before and started sprinting through the roof tops. He was not going to be late on team placement day so he put some chakra to his feet and bolted to the academy.

He reached the academy in no time at all, even before Sasuke arrived which surprised the raven haired boy greatly. He sat down in his seat next to Kiba and began talking to the Inuzuka about nothing in particular. This was until Iruka entered the classroom with a clipboard on hand. He looked forward to the class and cleared his throat.

"Alright class, this is the day that you abandon the life you had before to become ninja of the hidden leaf village. This is the day that will mark the new generation and set the scales for the next years to come. We have done our best to train you and now you will tackle the world not as children but as shinobi of the leaf. You have all willingly decided to sacrifice everything for the safety and wellbeing of your homes and because of this you have my respects." Iruka said making the student`s cheer. Naruto smirked knowing he was taking his first step to his dream.

"Now we will give out the teams and I hope they are to your liking." Iruka said changing his sights towards the list in his hand.

Team 1: Shikamaru, Choji and Ino

This didn`t surprise them since their parents, the famous Ino-Shika-Cho was famous and they wanted to maintain the legacy.

Team 2: Shino, Hinata Kiba

Hinata was a little disappointed in being separate form Naruto and Kiba saw this making him a little down.

"Don`t worry man, sooner or later she will see you for who you are." Naruto said, comforting Kiba. Naruto was oblivious of Hinata`s feelings for him since no matter how smart he was, he was clueless with girls.

The rest do not matter until team 7 since Lee, Tenten and Neji already graduated before them.

Team 7: Sasuke, Sakura and Lucy

This one was strange since they were all from the high scores. Of course Sakura was celebrating to be with her Sasuke-kun. Sasuke was less than pleased with his team arrangements. Lucy was stoic but annoyance was clear in her eyes.

All the teams were decided until Naruto was left out.

"Naruto Uzumaki, the hokage wants to speak to you personally about your team arrangements." Iruka said making him raise an eyebrow and everyone to look at Naruto confused. "You might want to go now since I`m going to pretty much leave and the rest will wait for their sensei.

Naruto was confused but nodded anyways and walked out the classroom. The class was murmuring on what the hokage could want with Naruto specifically. The rest of the students were murmuring after Naruto had left the classroom.

(Hokage Office)

Sarutobi was patiently waiting for the arrival of his student and grandson in all but name. He wore a smile on his face as he thought of his pupil and how far he has come so far. The doors open and seeing who it was made the hokage`s smile widen slightly.

"Hey old man, heard you wanted to see me." Naruto said as he came inside, ignoring the protest of the desk lady. He closed the door and sat down on the seat in front of the desk. "So, what you need?" Naruto asked.

Sarutobi shook his head and sighed with a smile. No matter how much they bonded, he still couldn`t get him to stop calling him that. He would not have it any other way though. It was just the way he was.

"Well Naruto as you know, since the number of students in this year's academy was disproportional in terms of numbers, I would be forced to send someone back for another year." Sarutobi said making Naruto`s eyes widen as he put two and two together. He was about to protest before Sarutobi raised his hand.

"But since I can personally vouch for your skill and I know you have the necessary qualities of a fine ninja, I will make a small exception for you this time." Sarutobi said, earning a look of confusion from Naruto. "Get me Genma Shiranui quickly." He ordered and an ANBU dropped and nodded before going to look for the jonin.

Minutes later the door opened to reveal a man. This man wore a v-neck shirt under the normal jonin jacket. He had brown eyes and brown hair that reached the back of his neck. His headband was facing to the back and he had a confident aura around him. He had the normal ninja pants and black ninja sandals. He also had a senbon needle sticking out of his mouth as he smirked towards the blonde boy in front of him.

"This him Hokage-sama?" Genma asked bowing lightly in respect to the hokage. He then took a good look at Naruto and smiled while extending his hand towards him. "Nice to meet you blondie, name`s Genma Shiranui and I`m going to be your jonin sensei from now on." Genma said making Naruto scowl lightly at the nickname but smirked and shook his hand.

"Alright Naruto, Genma you are both dismissed." Sarutobi said as Naruto and Genma walked out the office. "This will only get interesting from now on." He said to himself as he went back to a document that required his attention.

Naruto and Genma were walking away while heading nowhere in particular. They were both in silence until Genma decided to speak. "So Naruto, tell me a little about yourself." Genma said as he continued walking through the streets of konoha. He could see the glares being sent to Naruto and it bothered him, he knew what he was but he did not hate the boy.

"Well, my name is Naruto Uzumaki, I like ramen and learning new things to make me stronger. My hobbies are reading and playing some instruments I picked up, my dreams for the future is to surpass the fourth hokage." Naruto said as they arrived at a dango shop. "What about you?" Naruto asked while facing his new sensei. He cracked a smirk and walked over to a table and sat down as he pointed to the sit in front of him. Naruto sat down and got comfortable to learn of his new sensei.

"My name is Genma Shiranui, I like dango and reading. My hobbies include lying on a field watching clouds or training. My dreams for the future, well I haven`t really thought of any." Genma said switching to a thinking pose. "Maybe I should put more thought into it. Alright Naruto, be at training ground 24 early tomorrow so we can begin our training." Genma said as he disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Naruto was lightly confused by his sensei but he shrugged it off. He was about to walk away but was stopped as another swirl of leaves appeared next to him showing Genma.

"I forgot, I already know you were trained by Sarutobi to some extend so tomorrow we will judge how far you are." Genma said as he disappeared once again before letting Naruto talk. Naruto sighed as he began walking back to his apartment but passed the academy to see team 7 leaving. Sakura was asking Sasuke on a date to which she was being ignored and Lucy was trying to ignore both with a scowl on her face.

Naruto didn`t really have anything to do so he decided to see if he could talk to them. His mind made up he walked towards the trio.

"Hay guys, so how`s your sensei?" Naruto asked walking up next to them. The three switched their views to him, surprised by his appearance. Sasuke nodded, Sakura waved a little sad by being ignored by Sasuke and Lucy… well Lucy was just looking at him which made him a little uncomfortable. Thanks to Sakura`s intervention they avoided any awkward moment.

"First thing is that he was late to the meeting, then he didn`t even tell us about himself and ordered us to introduce ourselves." Sakura answered a little annoyance in her voice. Sasuke sighed and nodded and Lucy snorted. "He said his name was Kakashi Hatake or something, he is one of the strongest jonin out there but not the most responsible." Lucy said.

"Hey Naruto, why did you get called to the hokage`s office anyways, you pull a prank or something?" Sakura asked making all of them pay extra attention to Naruto. Both Sasuke and Lucy had the same question in their minds. Naruto sighed and got an idea.

"Let`s go to Ichiraku`s and I`ll explain there, my treat to." Naruto said happy since before he was a ninja he received a nice little income from the hokage and was able to raise a nice amount. The three nodded and followed Naruto to his favorite place to eat in the whole village.

They made it in no time at all and greeted the old man and his daughter. Once they were sited, Naruto said to get the three of them whatever they ordered and he would pay. They happily began making their orders and the three were now interrogating Naruto to reveal the mystery.

"Alright you three, you know that the academy graduates` numbers were disproportional for teams of three, right?" Naruto asked earning three nods in response. "Well, the hokage thought that it was a good idea that instead of dropping me a year that he would put me on a team by myself with my jonin sensei." Naruto said making them both freeze for a minute.

The three knew he was strong but how strong would you have to be able to go at it alone. They were now more interested in there comrade than before.

Before they could ask anything, their orders arrived. They began eating and thanks to Sarutobi, Naruto wasn`t vacuuming his cup of ramen like before but was eating moderately.

"Hey Naruto, let`s spar later but without holding back." Sasuke said, destroying the silence that overtook them as they ate. Naruto turned to him as he thought for a minute then smirked. What could he lose?

"Sure, why not?" Naruto responded making Sasuek smirk and nod. The other two girls looked surprised at Sasuke`s attitude. He didn`t demand a fight but instead asked. Something was very strange but none were complaining. They were actually looking forward to the spar between the strongest academy students.

"Well, I have to go." Naruto said while standing up. "Hey old man, put their cups on my bill alright, I have to go somewhere." Naruto said as he started jumping through the roofs on his way to his apartment. He wanted to get to reading as fast as he could on a jutsu scroll that Sarutobi had given him. It was a wind scroll and he wanted to learn it as fast as possible so he rushed to his apartment.

He arrived not to long after in his apartment and he quickly began reading. It was a jutsu called "Wind Style: Ravaging Winds." Which expelled a fierce wind out of the caster`s mouth which not only pushed but lightly cut the target. He and Sarutobi had checked his affinity and it turned out to be wind and that day he had given Naruto three scrolls, each having a wind style jutsu. This one was the first of the three.

A knock on the door interrupted his reading confusing Naruto. Who would visit him and much less at night? He stood up and and walked towards the door, he opened it to reveal a face that he expected less than Sasuke`s visit last time.

"Lucy?" Naruto asked confused by her appearance. "You need something?" He asked opening the door fully. For Lucy`s part, she had a scowl that seemed to accompany her everywhere she went.

Lucy was still trying to find a way to say what she was about to say. She wanted to thank Naruto for making Sasuke take his head out of his ass long enough to see the light. Now though, she didn`t know how to start. Things were getting awkward for Naruto since she has been standing at the door without moving a centimeter.

"Hey if you're going to just stand there, come in and have some tea." Naruto said moving so she could enter his apartment. She broke form her thoughts and nodded as she entered. The apartment was small but well organized (another miracle made by Sarutobi.) Both made their way to the kitchen and Naruto began preparing the tea. "What flavor do you prefer?" Naruto asked.

"Any will do really." Lucy said and Naruto nodded. He began boiling the water and while that did that he sat at the table. "Hey Naruto, I want to thank you for talking to Sasuke. He has changed and for the better." Lucy blurted out making Naruto quirk and eye-brow before smiling.

"Glad to help, I have noticed these changes to and I`m glad that he is finally able to see the light since his head was practically stuck in his ass for way to long." Naruto said making Lucy giggle lightly but she quickly controlled herself. Naruto noticed thought and smirked but she didn`t notice.

"Is that the only reason for your visit or is there more?" Naruto asked honestly curious. She could have said that another day so her visit still is a mystery.

"Yeah it was." Lucy said with a serious look on her face. She now noticed that she could have waited and it was embarrassing her. Why did she jump to this action out of nowhere? She was confused but she was cut from her thoughts from the whistling of the kettle signaling there tea was done.

Naruto stood up and took two cups and filled them with the liquid. He handed a cup to Lucy and took one for himself as he sat at the table across from the black haired girl.

"So Lucy, tell me about you." Naruto said making Lucy look at him confused by his interest. Naruto saw her reaction and he just sighed. "You barely talked to me in the academy so I know next to nothing about you, I`m just curious." Naruto said making her ease up but only slightly.

"Well you already know I have two brothers and you know I`m an Uchiha so what exactly do you want to know?" Lucy asked making Naruto shrug.

"Things you like, hobbies, dreams." Naruto said making Lucy sweat drop. Those were exactly the questions asked by her sensei. "Yes I know it`s not original but it`s a start." Naruto said making Lucy shrug but form a small smirk.

"I like to train, reading the family scrolls and fighting strong opponents. My dream is to surpass my big brother Itachi." Lucy said with conviction in her voice. "Well, It`s your turn now." She said while pointing at her fellow shinobi. He nodded and took another sip of his tea.

"Well I like to train mostly and play some music. My dream is to surpass a certain someone." Naruto said. He couldn`t go into too much detail about who since he would be going against Sarutobi`s instructions. Thank Kami that that something else picked her interest.

"Music, you play an instrument?" Lucy asked intrigued. Ever since she was little she had always been fascinated by music but never really bothered since her dad made her focus on being a shinobi. "Mind playing something?" Lucy asked making Naruto quirk an eyebrow.

Naruto took out a scroll containing the ocarina that Sarutobi had given to him. He started to play a peaceful tune that had a sad tone to it.

(Look up Lugia`s theme I love it like crazy.)

Immediately as the song started peace was felt, Lucy was looking at Naruto wide eyes as the song slowly picked up in pace but still holding it`s sad aura. Naruto was not paying attention as the song took complete hold of him. All the sadness that he had experienced so far could be felt right then and there as the tones melody enraptured anything that could hear it, including some people who were outside of the apartment.

Lucy for her part had tears in her eyes and she did not know why. Something about the tone was like seeing the blonde`s soul. It filled her with sadness yet it uplifted her at the same time.

Little did she know was that the feeling was because that song was all Naruto had suffered and when it was picking up it held the times that Naruto moved forward.

As the song ended and the mystical element vanished, Lucy quickly cleaned her eyes before she could be seen. Naruto opened his eyes and put the Ocarina once again in the scroll and pocketed it. He turned to Lucy who was looking at him with a serious expression.

She then stood up abruptly, trying very hard not to look weak. "I should go." Lucy said while walking to the door.

Before Naruto could say anything the door was closed and Lucy was walking to the Uchiha district. He did not see the small blush that had spread through her face nor did notice that her heart rate was faster than usual.

Naruto shrugged and took both cups of tea to the sink. He was going to sleep since he needed to get up early for tomorrow.

Lucy was on her bed trying to get the tone out of her head. She just knew that there was more to that song that she knew. She just didn`t know what.

-Well, that ends this chapter which was way longer than the one`s before. I `m sorry for the delay but I didn`t have time to proof read and I don`t like to release a chapter without at least checking it once. Please review for me to know what I`m doing right and what I`m doing wrong.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: C-Rank Mission

It was morning in konoha as Naruto walked through its awaking streets in the direction to training ground 24. Two weeks had already passed since the teams were set up. The streets were mostly empty since it was early in the morning and Naruto was silently thanking Kami for that. He did not want to receive those looks he always gets.

As he walked through Konoha, he spotted Kiba walking the training gounds as well. Naruto had not seen Kiba in some time so he decided to at least say hi to the Inuzuka. He walked next to him making Kiba look at him surprised.

"Naruto man, It`s been almost forever." Kiba said putting his hand over Naruto`s neck. "Thought the Hokage had sent you away man, I was worried. Who else could help me pull those awesome pranks?" Kiba asked making Naruto laugh.

"Come on, It`s just been two weeks and no one at all." Naruto said putting his hands in his pockets. "You and I are the dynamic duo of Konoha." Naruto said proudly making Kiba chuckle. They continued talking about nothing in particular as they walked to Kiba`s training area. Since Naruto had woken up early he had time.

As they walked through the village they saw someone they had not seen in a long time. Iruka was walking to the academy and they both got a grin when they saw him.

Iruka was walking peacefully when he saw a blonde girl walking in front of him drop something. It seemed that she had not noticed and Iruka was about to grab her but she disappeared in the crowd. Iruka went to the dropped item and picked it up. It was a…

"Oh shit!" Iruka yelled as he unfurled the paper to inspect it. It was another burst tag like the one Naruto used on him. It exploded but instead of colors this time it was sticky glitter.

"Naruto!" The now bedazzled Iruka yelled as Naruto and Kiba ran, laughing like maniacs.

They ran all the way to Kiba`s training area so they made it there in no time at all. They were panting from running all the way there. They both looked at each other and started laughing as they fell back on the grass.

"You're insane Naruto." Kiba said trying to control his laughter. It had been so long since he laughed like that and it was refreshing to be with his friend again. "You have to teach me that burst tag thing." Kiba said as he calmed down and lay on the grass.

"Alright Kiba, I`ll teach you but I should get to my training ground." Naruto said as he thought about how much time he had wasted already. "See yah Kiba." Naruto said as he began running towards training ground 24 once again.

Naruto arrived in the clearing where Genma was already waiting for him with his arms crossed. He landed in front of his sensei and began explaining what had happened. Once done, Genma was still laughing from the prank.

"I shouldn`t be laughing but instead reprimanding you for that but damn, you bedazzled him?" Genma asked still chuckling. "Alright, alright show me what you have learned these last few weeks." Genma ordered getting serious.

Naruto nodded and began walking up a tree with no problem. He then began walking on water but this gave him a small challenge since with such a large reserve of chakara, he was bound to have some problem. He then began doing hand signs and drew his head back.

"Wind Style: Ravaging Winds!" Naruto yelled as a strong gust of wind shot out of his mouth. It left a couple of trees with deep cuts while others were yanked out entirely. He began doing hand signs once again.

"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!" Naruto yelled as strong winds erupted from Naruto`s boy pushing everything away from him. Genma had to put chakara into his feet as to not fly off.

"I mastered this as well." Naruto said as he placed a senbon in his mouth. He put some wind chakara in his mouth and used that pressure to shoot the senbon with great force. It went through the tree when he shot it and also the ones behind it.

"Well Naruto, have to say that to do all of this in two weeks is very impressive." Genma said making Naruto rub the back of his head. "You know what, I think it`s high time we did a c-rank mission. Even I can only hold so many d-ranks." Genma said making Naruto smirk.

"Well It`s about time, I was tired of saving that damn cat over and over again." Naruto said remembering the demon cat Tora. "Though I think rescue is the wrong word, more like bringing her back to hell since her owner is always killing it with her love." Naruto said remembering the times he had done the mission only to smile evilly as the demon cat was smashed against the woman`s breast in a hug.

"Yeah, let`s go to the mission room." Genma said as he began to walk with his student. "So Naruto, why don`t we go over your skills to see where we stand?" Genma asked making Naruto nod.

"Well alright, I know tree climbing, water walking, clone jutsu, substitution, transformation and two of the three scrolls the old man gave me. I also know I have wind affinity and I have low-chunnin level taijutsu. I still have problems with my chakara control but that`s because of my… condition, this makes it hard to cast genjutsu." Naruto said making Genma nod.

"Good Naruto, remember it`s always important to know your limits." Genma said making Naruto nod in understanding. "As for your genjutsu, I will ask Kurenai if she can help you with that." Genma said making Naruto once again nod.

"So team 7, you say you're ready for a c-rank eh?" Sarutobi asked the four people next to him. Sasuke and Lucy nodded and Sakura did so reluctantly. "Well, what do you say Kakashi?" The hokage asked earning a small nod from Kakashi.

"Alright then, Iruka go get me the bridge builder." Sarutobi ordered as Iruka nodded and poofed away. Minutes later an old man with a bottle of sake in his left hand entered the room. He could be smelled from a mile away and his cloths didn`t exactly spell class.

"What the hell am I supposed to do with three kids and a pirate? One of them looks like a duck`s ass, the other like a cotton candy and the other…" Tazuna tried to finish but the glare Lucy sent him shut him up completely.

"This is a c-rank mission MR. Tazuna so I expect them to be enough." Sarutobi said with a smile but he knew something was up. He wasn`t the professor for nothing, just as he was about to cancel the order the doors opened Naruto and his sensei Genma. 'Alright, this might work.' The Hokage thought as he stared towards the blonde gennin.

"Alright then, Naruto I presume you're here for a mission?" Sarutobi asked as Naruto made his way to the front of the table.

"Of course old man, I`d go insane if I sat still for too long." Naruto said earning a chuckle from the old Hokage. "Though, I want something more on the lines of c-rank." Naruto said making Sarutobi smile at the convenience of the situation.

"Alright Naruto, I want you to accompany team 7 on their c-rank to protect Tazuna. They have to be in wave as quickly as they can and I want you to assist." Sarutobi said making Naruto shrug. Sasuke smirked thinking that this trip might not be so boring after all. Sakura was indifferent and Lucy… Lucy just scoffed with the decision. Why would they need another team when they could handle a simple c-rank?

"Genma, you will not accompany them." Sarutobi said making Genma look at him surprised. "I need to talk about something within the matters of a certain test." The Hokage said making Genma nod in understanding. Naruto was another story but he just shrugged it off.

"Alright team 7, Naruto, be at the village gates in half an hour, dismissed." Sarutobi said making all of them nod and begin walking away. 'I know that I can trust you Naruto, please keep them safe.' Sarutobi thought as the doors closed.

"Alright guys I`ll meet you at the gate in half an hour." Naruto said as he began jumping through the roof tops.

"Well, this is going to be an interesting mission." Kakashi said as he poofed away. Sasuke and Lucy walked towards the Uchiha compound as Sakura walked towards her home.

Thirty minutes passed at the gate stood team 7, Tazuna and Naruto. As always, Kakashi was late and they were silently waiting for his arrival. Naruto decided to use his time wisely and took out a scroll for sealing techniques. He always had an interest in sealing even though it was a very difficult art to master.

"What you reading?" Sasuke asked as he sat next to the blonde against the gates. Naruto looked at him strangely but shrugged. "A scroll on some sealing arts, it`s hard but once you learn it there is almost nothing you can`t do." Naruto said making Sasuke interested.

"You mean like sealing scrolls or paper tags?" Sasuke asked making Naruto. "You wanna make your own paper bombs or something?" Sasuke asked making Naruto sigh.

"You're thinking too one directionally. Seals can do so much more than just sealing scrolls or paper bombs. For example, the one I am studying right now are resistance seals. With these seals you can make your body exert itself without weights making a more balanced training." Naruto said.

Naruto and Sasuke talked about seals until Kakashi arrived. Once he was there he received the screams of Sakura, the glares from Sasuke and Lucy and the amused look from Naruto.

"Well then, I guess we are all here. Naruto, Sasuke you both will be in front, Sakura, Lucy you both will be on each side of Tazuna and I`ll be in the back." Kakashi ordered, receiving nods from them all. "Ok then, let`s go." Kakashi finished as they began walking towards Wave.

Time passed in relative silence as they made their way to the village. Lucy was sometimes taking quick glances towards Naruto. He was an enigma to her, funny and nice sometimes but serious and professional when the time was right. He was also strong, that much was obvious but there was something about him that she did not know, she could feel it. Like a dark secret just waiting to be unearthed.

"Kakashi sensei, did it rain yesterday?" Naruto asked making Sasuke, Sakura, Lucy and Tzuna look at him strangely. Kakashi though, knew why he had asked. He had seen those puddles but it was as dry as it could be.

"No Naruto, it did not." Kakashi said making Naruto very confused. He knew it hadn`t rain but where the hell did those puddles come from. It was dry everywhere else and there were only to puddles… in the middle of the road… conveniently in their way. "Shit!" Naruto shouted as he got a kunai ready.

Right then, two figures with huge claws erupted from the puddles with a chain between them. They then cut Kakashi into pieces making them all freeze. Naruto, having seen worst from the villagers quickly regained his sense and attacked the distracted enemy. He launched a kunai at the left one but he dodged.

The two clawed ninja severed the chain holding them together and ran towards Tazuna. Naruto then made hands signs and pulled his head back.

"Wind Style: Ravaging Winds!" He yelled as the strong current of winds hit the inattentive ninja to the right but the left one kept going. Lucy got in the way and tried to stab him with a Kunai. The nukenin dodged and the claw made its way to her abdomen. Before the blade could impale her though, in a poof she was replaced with Naruto.

The blades had pierced his abdomen as they came out of his back. He then took an iron grip of the clawed hand`s wrist. Naruto then used the kunai in his right hand to stab the ninja in the neck, effectively killing him. As the ninja dropped, his brother got up and went to attack the injured Naruto. Before he could do anything though, Kakashi appeared and broke his neck by a kick.

Naruto then dropped to his knees and took the blade out of his stomach as blood fell from the wound. He then felt something that was not good at all in his opinion.

"Shit, it was poisoned." Naruto said. He was hoping that the regenerative power that he held would be enough but now that he was poisoned it would be worst. The villagers had already tried poison but didn`t have an effect but it always hurt like a bitch. "Kakashi sensei, it was poisoned." Naruto said so only his sensei could hear.

Kakashi already knew about the Kyuubi so it was certain that Naruto would pull through since the blades had not stabbed anything important. Naruto then fell to the ground in pain and Kakashi could do nothing but pick him up and turn to the rest of the team.

"Alright, were going to rest now since Naruto is in no condition to move. We will set up camp and wait for tomorrow to continue to wave." Kakashi said earning nods of understanding from the team and Tazuna. They made their way to a small clearing that was next to the road and set up the tents.

(Couple Hours Later)

Naruto`s eyes slowly opened as he regained consciousness. He inspected his surroundings to see he was inside a tent and since it was so dark he concluded that it was night. He sighed softly and stood up from his sleeping bag. He stretched and noticed that the injury on his abdomen had healed already and since he could not feel the pain anymore then it meant the poison was out as well.

He excited his tent since he didn`t really feel like going back to sleep. He looked around to see three other tents. One was holding the Sakura and Lucy, the other held Kakashi and most probably Tazuna while the last held Sasuke.

"Finally up eh?" Kakashi asked from on top of a tree. He was taking watch duty since the others were still shaken form the encounter of the two missing nins and needed sleep. "You heal way to quickly, it`s actually sort of creepy." Kakashi said with his eye smile.

"Yeah I guess, you know if there`s a river I can use to take a quick bath?" Naruto asked hoping to take off some of the sweat he had slept in. Kakashi pointed to the left and Naruto nodded as he began walking in the direction he was pointed to.

A couple of minutes later, another figure excited one of the tents. It was Lucy and she looked a little annoyed for reasons Kakashi could not decipher. She then turned to the area that she knew Kakashi was watching from.

"Is their some place I can take a shower?" Lucy asked making Kakashi freeze before a maniacal grin came to his mouth, not that it could be seen through the face mask of course. He then pointed in the same direction that he told Naruto making her nod and go.

"Oh this is going to be good." Kakashi said to himself as he made a shadow clone to follow Lucy. This was something he did not want to miss.

-This ends chapter 7. It has seriously become a problem to write these chapters each week but I will try to always be on time. Next week`s chapter might be pushed back for at least a day but It will come. Please review to let me know what I`m doing right or wrong.

-Please review! It always helps me so much hearing from my readers.

-Before you make this question, the reason Kakashi did not confront Tazuna on the mission not being just a C-Rank was because Naruto was not awake and he needs the whole team to know this.


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